With the Atlantic City Boardwalk Bullies having wrapped up their first Kelly Cup championship last week by defeating Columbia in five games, the East Coast Hockey League turns its focus to renaming the league and ongoing negotiations with the player's union for a new collective bargaining agreement.
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With the addition of several West Coast Hockey League teams for the upcoming season, the ECHL will announce its new name on today.
According to the United States Patent and Trademark Office's Web site, the ECHL has submitted applications for four possible names - the Super Hockey League (SHL), Premier Hockey League (PHL), Continental Hockey Association (CHA), and Federal Hockey League (FHL).
As for talks on a bargaining agreement, which expires May 31, the owners and the Professional Hockey Players Association continue to discuss a new veteran rule and salary cap for the upcoming season.
The owners have proposed lowering the number of vets each team can carry from four to two, and also have proposed a significant reduction in the salary cap. The two sides are scheduled to meet again this week.
SPIRIT OF ST. LOUIS: Forward Josh St. Louis is happy to remain an Augusta Lynx.
Because of a Lynx front office error, St. Louis' rights were mistakenly traded to Johnstown earlier this month to complete the Phil Roy trade.
The ECHL returned St. Louis' rights to Augusta because the trade's original paperwork clearly stipulated that Augusta had the choice to send either St. Louis or defenseman Chris Gustafson in the deal.
"I'm very happy and very relieved," St. Louis said by phone from his home in Calgary, Canada. "I didn't really understand what happened. I love Augusta and I'm just glad it worked out."
COACH UPDATE: Perry Florio has all but removed himself from consideration to become the next Lynx coach.
Florio has interviewed in Florence, Wheeling and Columbus, and is believed to be leaning toward the Pride.
The former Roanoke Express coach said he hoped to hear back from Florence this weekend. He could be introduced as the Pride's new coach as early as Monday.
Lynx acting general manager Larry Kish said last week that hundreds of resumes have crossed his desk, and that he is no closer to hiring a coach than he was more than two weeks ago when Wilkie announced he was not returning.
ON THE MEND: Lynx minority owner Pete Budwick, a longtime supporter of hockey in Augusta and the first local investor to purchase a stake in the team, was hospitalized last week, and remains in intensive care at Doctors Hospital following surgery for an undisclosed ailment.
Budwick, one of the co-owners of the Augusta Ice Sports Center, reportedly is improving and could be released from the hospital early next week.
The former Augusta real estate developer helped save Augusta's public ice rink from closing nearly two years ago, and has been instrumental in the growth and development of the rink's youth and adult hockey programs.
The facility was within hours of being closed after the former owners threatened to shut the doors in August 2001 before Budwick, former USA Hockey director John Crerar and his son, Aiken businessman Duncan Crerar, bought the facility.
Reach Rob Mueller at (706) 823-3425.
